# warm the cockles of someone's heart

> English word · Verb · IPA /wɔːm ðə ˈkɒk.əlz əv ˌsʌm.wənz ˈhɑːt/

## Definitions
1. Especially of food or drink (particularly an alcoholic beverage): to cause someone to feel deeply warm and comfortable; to comfort, to satisfy.
2. To provide someone with a deep feeling of contentment or happiness.

## Etymology
PIE word
 *ḱḗr
Either from:
* the similarity of a closed cockle (“European bivalve mollusk of the family Cardiidae”) to a heart; or
* a corruption of Latin cochleae (“ventricles”) in cochleae cordis (“ventricles of the heart”).
The term cockles of [someone’s] heart is first attested in 1671: see the quotation.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/warm-the-cockles-of-someone-s-heart